A Student in Pink
by PerditaAlottachocolate
Summary: Gabriel "Hawk Moth" Agreste thought taking the case of a missing Marinette D.C. would be a good way of concluding his career as the Paris most renowned sleuth and of introducing Adrien as the one to take over his detective empire. He didn't have a clue he would have to face his archenemy, Master Fu and his Kwamis, or that his son would join them pursuing a beautiful thief - Ladybug
1. Chapter 1 A Student in Pink

_Author's Note: Happy April Fool's Day, everybody! This story however is not a joke, but a very serious (or not? ;) ) multichapter AU. I hope you'll like it._

* * *

 **A Student in Pink**

Gabriel "Hawk Moth" Agreste was Paris most renowned private detective. During his long and fruitful career he had earned enough respect to be considered 'the man who can turn impossible into possible' and enough money to own a comfy mansion in the 21st arrondissement. His employees were known to be strict, professional and painfully effective. Through the years Parisians had learnt to call them The Butterflies although no one knew where the nickname came from. A commonly held belief said that was because they were silent, sneaky and could smell trouble a mile off. They were good. So good, that no one seemed to know how exactly could they success in even the most dangerous or infeasible tasks. There were a few rumors about superhero abilities of Hawk Moth's champions, but people spreading them were silenced really quickly.

Today – the 1st of April – was a very special day for Gabriel, as it was exactly forty years ago when he took his first case. Forty years in this business was indeed a very unique anniversary. Usually detectives didn't last that long. They either couldn't keep their record mostly successful or were put out of business by people, who didn't like being messed with. Gabriel Agreste managed not only to stay on top, but also to build an enterprise, that could be described only as a detective empire. Still you cannot run a successful detective agency without making a few enemies. And although The Butterflies seemed to be really effective in keeping them at bay, the renowned sleuth felt the old age creeping in and the thought of retiring seemed more and more attractive with every passing day.

That day he finally made the decision. This was going to be his last case, before his son Adrien would take over the business. And afterwards Gabriel would finally take his beloved wife for the journey of their lifetime, the trip around the world. They've been planning it since Adrien was born, and now after a quarter of century Susanne's dream would finally come true.

'Sir, the clients are already here. Should I send them into your office?' his assistant's voice brought him back from his musings.

'Yes, Nathalie. And please let Adrien know, I require his presence too. Would you be so kind and brief him on the Dupain-Cheng case before he comes in?' Gabriel replied through his intercom.

'Yes, sir. Of course.' Her voice was strong, although he knew she was shaken. She was his assistant for the past ten years, and when he told her earlier that day he was retiring, she didn't take it well. She was a good employee, but her and Adrien didn't exactly get along. No wonder she dreaded the thought of the young Agreste as her boss.

'Thank you, Nathalie. Let them in.'

* * *

'Sir. You don't know how much it means to us, that you've agreed to take our case. We don't know what to do and police is clueless.' The owner of one of the best bakeries in the city was currently crushing Gabriel's hand to a pulp in his enormous palms. He loomed over Gabriel, which was quite an achievement considering the sleuth himself was a good 6'3 foot tall. The detective knew that despite the force of his handshake Tom Dupain was a kind and warmhearted man.

'That's hardly any news for me, Mr. Dupain.' Gabriel finally managed to pull his hand out of the baker's reach and put it behind his back to discreetly massage some life into in again. 'The abilities of Paris law enforcement community are precisely the reason why my services are in such a demand.'

'Marinette is our only child, sir. I don't know what we would do without her.' Mrs. Dupain-Cheng wiped another tear rolling down her cheek. The petit Chinese started sobbing again, and Tom wrapped his arm around her to give her some comfort. Gabriel could see that she was devastated, and her husband barely held his bearing too. That was understandable. He would feel the same should something happen to Adrien. Although that was exactly the reason his son received a proper education, including martial arts, special force training, science, psychology and management courses, not to mention a necessary detective license. He was also fluent in three foreign languages, and could play piano. The last ability was at insistence of his mother. Gabriel really couldn't see how it would be useful, but the boy liked to play, so he didn't object.

'Mrs. Dupain-Cheng, let me assure you that we will do everything within our power to find your daughter and bring her to you safe and sound.' Gabriel assured the woman in his most gentle and professional tone. 'Our agency had dealt with similar cases and I am proud to say, we've never failed.'

At that the door to his study opened revealing a tall young man with a blond halo of hair surrounding his handsome face. His eyes were of an unbelievable shade of green, like two emeralds gleaming in his eye sockets. Years of physical training gave him a slender yet muscular figure, though there was a unique almost cat-like grace in his movements.

'This is my son, Adrien. He will be responsible for your daughter's case, with my personal assistance of course.' Gabriel waved his hand motioning the young man to stand by his side.

'But… he's so young!' Mrs. Dupain-Chang exclaimed through her sobs. Adrien gave her a small smile. He was used to that sort of reaction. Although he was almost 26, peoples still thought he was barely a tall teenager.

'I can assure you, that Adrien is more than capable to perform this task. His training was meticulous, with my strict supervision. He's already more experienced than half of my men and never failed me. I have utmost trust in his abilities.' Gabriel put his hand on the blonde's shoulder and gave him a half hug. He was a proud father and wasn't ashamed of that. 'We have to consider your daughter's young age, and that's where Adrien's fresh looks comes in handy. Should the need arise he can infiltrate any group of youth, remaining unsuspected. He'd already done that several times, always with excellent results.'

'Well, if that's the case…' Tom raised from his seat and took Adrien's hand. 'Please, son. Bring our daughter back.' He heartily squeezed the blonde's palm looking him straight in the eyes. 'I can see you're a good lad. You'll find our little Marinette.'

'Little Marinette?' Adrien looked puzzled. 'Wasn't it written in her files that she was a student?'

'Ah yes, son, she is. But you have to excuse a sorrowful father for a little sentiment. As much as I am aware she's grown into a beautiful and wise woman, in my heart she's still my little princess, with pigtails and a pink dress.'

The young detective smiled fondly. His heart melted at how this man loved his child. 'Do you have any pictures of her? I'll be needing those, as well as information.'

'Of course, dear. We've brought some with us, but we also have others at our house.' Mrs. Dupain-Cheng took an album from her bag and handed it to Adrien. He opened it at a random page and looked at the photograph of the missing girl.

For a moment his heart stopped. His gaze swept over the sapphire eyes framed with dark long lashes, midnight blue hair falling down her back, cute freckled cheeks, alabaster complexion and pink lips. It went to a gorgeous powder pink cocktail dress, slender arms and long nicely shaped legs. He took in the look on her face – a bit of cockiness, a touch of courage, a tad of recklessness, a gleam of mischief, all soaked in pure joy of life. If she looked like that in a simple picture, in reality she was probably breathtaking.

'Marinette made that dress herself, you know.' Tom murmured bending over Adrien's shoulder to take a look at the photograph. 'She studies art and design, but she always wanted to be a fashion designer. So far she's already an excellent seamstress.' The baker didn't even try to hide his pride. ' _And he shouldn't have,_ ' the boy thought, ' _The dress is amazing. Almost as amazing as the girl._ '

As Adrien stared at the picture a strange feeling crawled up his guts, a sensation he couldn't quite place. He was positive he had never met the girl, and yet she looked familiar. He put that thought for later. Now it was time to get to business.

* * *

The young detective took some time to gather information from the girl's parents. His father helped him when they wandered off topic praising their daughter or recollecting some meaningless childhood anecdotes. Gabriel gently steered the conversation back to the right track. After all they weren't writing her biography, but were looking for useful clues. And as much as Adrien found that adorable, that little Marinette was a passionate ballerina, and had kept up her yoga and gymnastic classes even after graduating from lycee, he had to agree with his father that it didn't constitute a good lead. Of course later he would kick himself for not being more thoughtful.

Leaving his father to his business Adrien offered to drive the distressed bakers home and used this opportunity to inspect the young woman's room back at the bakery. He took a close look at the pink attic, at the pink chaise lounge with a pink umbrella, at the pink desk with pink office chair, at the pink comforter on a loft bed, and finally at the pink dressing table and sewing machine. Then he decided to give the case a code name "A Student in Pink". It seemed only adequate.

He asked the girl's parents if they would mind if he took a look at her (pink) computer, and they granted him permission to do that. They were really worried. He copied her e-mails and the browser's history to his web account in order to inspect it later in detail. There was no sign of social media activity on the computer, so if she was keen on that, she probably used only her (probably pink) phone. The phone that was turned off since the day she went missing.

Adrien thanked his clients for every bit of information he was able to obtain. They were most grateful even though he didn't do anything yet. He'd never met such nice people before and was really sorry they had to face such a terrible incident.

As he chewed through his second croissant from the monstrous pile Tom handed him at his departure, he thought that Marinette must have been a very lucky girl. He hoped he would find her soon and unharmed. Already a plan formed in his mind. He decided to start with the e-mail account and browser's history. Maybe there were some clues there. He would have to visit her art academy and talk to her friends, but that would be a task for tomorrow.

Adrien had to admit that the case was really interesting. Police detectives were baffled and positively helpless. No clues, no motives, no suspects, no notes. The girl just disappeared into thin air. Now that he came to think of it, that rang a bell. He took Marinette's photo from her file and gave it a closer look. Again that strange feeling in his guts he couldn't shake off all day told him there was something familiar about her. Finally he pinpointed the impression. He stood up from his desk currently covered in various materials from "The Student in Pink" case and went to his bedroom.

He had a little hobby, one that he never told anybody about. It was something that started as outside interest, and became an obsession. When Adrien started his career in his father's business, he decided he'd be the greatest detective of all times. Sure, his father was already a great one, so the bar for his son was set punishingly high. That was why Adrien decided to chose his goals with care and bravery of the twenty year old. He decided that in order to become the detective of detectives he would have to catch the thief of thieves. The most mysterious and successful Paris burglar, so stealthy no one had ever seen her in person. So cunning no one knew how she managed to pass all the securities undetected and loot event the most impenetrable vaults. She specialized in art and jewelry, although from time to time moved out of her way to obtain unique electronic equipment or a newly yet to be patent chemical formula.

He was following every incident, every notification, every rumor for the past four years. He still knew very little, but probably more than anybody else. And last month he finally got lucky. After months of guessing on her next target he found himself on the spot when she struck again. Although nobody knew about that, the master thief known as Ladybug could no longer claim to be unseen, as Adrien not only managed to take a very good look at her (which surprisingly left him stunned and breathless) but also to take a not so good picture (probably due to being stunned and breathless).

Now safely hidden in his apartment he opened his Ladybug file, usually hidden under the lose floor tile in his bedroom. He took the blurry photo from the folder and compared it with the picture of a Marinette Dupain-Chang dressed in a beautiful red column dress (of her own design). And the creeping feeling of familiarity finally found its conclusion.

His plans for tomorrow instantly went down the drain, as he knew in that moment that the only place he would be visiting was the lair of his father's archenemy, the headquarters of Master Fu and his faithful Kwamis. And he probably shouldn't let any of them know he was the heir of the Agreste detective empire. Already an idea started to form in his head…

* * *

 _AN: Yeah, I know. I already have three other fics going. But I just couldn't help it. And who needs to sleep anyway?_

 _I'm dying to know what you think._


	2. Chapter 2 A Man in Black

_Author's note: Thank you for your reviews, follows and favs. It means a world to me if you do that after just one chapter._

 _I hope the next one is also to your liking._

* * *

 **Chapter 2 "A Man in Black"**

The only certain piece of information on Ladybug was that she worked for Master Fu. Adrien didn't know exactly what was the source of this information, but so far it was his only shot for the mysterious case of A Student in Pink. He could assume that, no matter how incompetent, police investigators had already checked the most obvious circumstances of Marinette Dupain-Cheng's disappearance, so it was a sensible thing to follow this new trace. On the other hand it wouldn't be wise to leave all the other data unexamined, just in case the cops had missed something. There was also the possibility that his intuition would fail him and Master Fu had nothing to do with the vanishing girl. He probably should discuss that with Gabriel, as his father knew quite a lot about the crime lord, but that would entail revealing his photo of Ladybug and explaining his secret interest in the thief. Maybe not the smartest move then.

Adrien briefly considered his options and then picked up his phone. _'After all, what are assistants for?'_ he chuckled at that thought choosing a number. The call was answered before the first tone ended ringing in his ear. The young sleuth realized he had never seen his assistant without a phone within reach.

'What's up, bosssssssssss?' a cheeky voice greeted him.

Adrien suppressed a groan of irritation. 'How many times have I asked you not to call me boss?'

'I don't know, boss. I've stopped counting after the first zillion,' he could hear the smirk in the voice. Apparently it was some kind of ritual, every time there was something urgent his assistant pulled off this stunt.

He sighed, 'Please stop calling me boss.'

The voice answered with a chuckle, 'Sorry, boss. I won't, boss.'

'Alya!' Even Adrien had his limits, and the owner of the voice was well aware of that.

'Relax, Ade. I'm just teasing you!' she giggled. 'So what's up?'

Alya and Adrien knew each other for years. They've met in one of those martial arts courses and they hit it off right away. In no time Alya was the young Agreste's closest friend. She definitely had a knack for pursuing mysteries and was a perfect sleuth material if Adrien ever saw one. So when the nosy auburn girl finally completed her courses with top marks it was only natural that she was offered an internship in the best detective agency in Paris and then the post of the founder's son's assistant. At first Gabriel had some reservations but the two of them soon proved to be a dream team at solving crimes. They would probably be inseparable if it wasn't for Adrien's girlfriend. As Alya commented after their introduction, there is something like hatred at first sight.

'We've got a new case, girl. I need you to do some digging and sniffing.' Adrien announced.

'Maybe you should call the hound of the Baskervilles then? I've just had my nails done.' His assistant replied in the most bored voice in the world.

'Ouch, another girlfriend reference.' The detective shook his head. 'I thought you were above that, Al.'

The reply came instantly. ' _I_ am. _She_ apparently is not. Anyway, you know I have to ask again. What do you see in her?'

Adrien sighed audibly. 'I'll answer once again with "there's more to her than meets the eye".'

'Well, there's definitely more to her that meets the ears too, but she's totally not your type.' His friend pointed out, helpful as always. Adrien was so tired of this conversation.

'Oh, and you would know what my type was?'

'Apparently better than you.' As many times before the girl wasn't in the least interested in dropping the subject. He was used to it by now, though it didn't make her attitude less annoying.

'Alya, can we please leave the girlfriend issue aside? We've got work to do. Missing art student this time. Could you please do some research and take a look at the things I've got so far?'

'I suppose I could, seeing as I'm your assistant and all.' She finally decided to lose the tease. Adrien indeed had his limits, and the girlfriend issue could well be his breaking point. 'Send me what you've got and I'll check the database for the rest. What's the code name?'

Adrien chuckled at the reminder of miss Dupain-Cheng's room. '"A Student in Pink"', he said.

'No, it's not,' the girl replied with concrete certainty.

'Yes, it is.' He insisted, mistaking her denial for sass. 'You should have seen her room!'

Alya just ignored him. 'Have you created the case record yet?'

'No, I was about to do it now. Why?'

His friend sighed. 'Then you have to change the name. You would duplicate an earlier record.'

'What record? And how do you know?' He frowned. 'Even you wouldn't be crazy enough to memorize all the records in our archives.'

'I appreciate your trust, _boss_.' She made sure he caught the last word, 'In fact I haven't memorized them. Yet.' Adrien winced at that while she continued. 'But I took a look at some cases in my free time, just out of interest.'

'Oh.' He could understand that, as for the last four years he did a fair share of data mining looking for any clues on a certain elusive thief.

'It's actually a funny coincidence,' Alya elaborated, 'Nathalie mentioned today, that this case is going to be the last one for your father before he retires? Well, as it happens "A Student in Pink" was the code name for the first case your father took. And the first case involving Ladybug.'

'Wait! What?!'

* * *

Meanwhile in a more shabby part of the city things weren't going great for Master Fu, the perennial leader of the Kwami gang. In fact lately it seemed like problems had to queue to get his attention. And that was even before the girl returned from her last job. After that it seemed the queue turned into a mob.

The short Chinese was strolling down the long corridors of his residence slash storehouse slash headquarters, trying to assess the situation. His steps echoed in the vast empty spaces. His red shirt with white flower pattern was the only mark of color in the grayish postindustrial backgrounds. He felt old and tired. The only thing that kept him going was the personal vendetta he carefully plotted through the long and lonely years. He was so close and yet once again Hawk Moth somehow managed to be ahead of him and not by just one step, oh no. Not for the first time Fu pondered, if the man possessed any unconventional powers or if he was simply lucky. Now logic told the old master, that you couldn't be lucky for forty years, yet the experience proved otherwise. He really tried not to get angry, but it was hard considering the circumstances.

Finally Master Fu reached his destination among countless of rooms and corners. He peered into a dark spacer lightened only by a single bedside lamp and nodded to the woman hunched over the bed, motioning her to come to the door.

'How is she?' he demanded, though minding to keep his voice down.

'She's still unconscious and feverish. Your methods aren't working, Fu. If you'd just let me…' The woman trailed off startled by the daggers in Fu's glare. She crossed her arms in front of her red dress as if it could shield her from his anger. The man raised his brown eyes to meet her blue ones, then looked up to the black ornamental dot tattooed on her forehead against her chestnut skin. Suddenly he grabbed her mahogany hair pulling her closer to him.

'My methods always work, Tikki. Don't you forget that!' he drawled out through gritted teeth. 'I need her to wake up. I need her fit enough to perform again. And I need it to be soon.'

The woman referred to as Tikki nodded slightly, not daring to move while he continued growling into her ear. 'Do whatever it takes. If you think my ways are not good enough, fine, use whatever means you deem necessary. But I expect her up and about as soon as possible. Is that clear?'

'Yes, Fu,' she managed to whisper. He released her hair and straightened up acting as if nothing happened. 'Good, then get to it. The others will help should you require their assistance.'

'Yes, Fu,' Tikki repeated retreating to the room when he turned around and left, his steps echoing loudly in the corridor. She inspected the still figure curled on the bed. Her forehead was hot, and the mask covering her eyes didn't help to make it cooler, but Tikki didn't dare to take it off. It was one of the most important rules here, to never take one's mask off. The red suit was wrapped tight around the slumbered body and that too had remained in place since the girl was brought here. Tikki wondered for like a hundredth time, how many scars, bruises and wounds that garment hid. The woman placed cold compresses on the feverish head and neck. She gently ran her fingers through midnight blue hair lying on the pillow and sighed. She hoped her abilities as a healer would be enough to aid the situation. A shadow appeared silently at the door. Tikki didn't even bother to look that way.

'It's good you're here. I need Trixx to run an errand for me, tell her it's urgent. She knows what I'll require.' She instructed never taking her eyes of the comatose girl.

'She's already waiting in the hall.' The shadow replied in a low murmur, his greenish eyes gleaming in the darkness.

'Good. Then send her right away and come back.' She sighed heavily again raising her eyes to meet his gaze. 'We need to talk, Plagg.'

* * *

After the initial shook caused by Alya's discovery and the explanations that followed, Adrien managed to establish some schedule, made sure his assistant received the files and set to work on them. He decided to investigate her surprising discovery of "A Student in Pink" old case later, when he would have some time. The young detective didn't tell his assistant what he was about to do, not yet. He most certainly would need some backup, but he was pretty sure that she would give him a piece of her mind after hearing about his plan. He would have to present it to her as a fait accompli, presumably just before entering Master Fu lair leaving her no time to object.

On that subject though, you couldn't just go to the wasps' nest, knock politely and hope they'll let you do your thing. What you needed, as Adrien was instructed in one of his courses, was 3P: preparation, precaution and plausibility. The keen student that he was tried to argue that throwing in some ammo, shotguns, shields, hooks, ordnance, lasers and explosives couldn't do any harm, but the instructor wasn't happy with the resulting abbreviation, so the topic was dropped.

Still the 3P rule of thumb held true. The young detective needed every advantage he could gain, he needed to prepare meticulously for even the most surprising circumstances. He needed a really good, really practical and perfectly plausible disguise, preferably something possible to maintain in the long run. Experience had taught him that the trick to lie convincingly is to tell a different truth and never make something totally up. Because there's always, always going to be someone who's been where you've been, heard the other mate telling his mate or knew a guy who knew a guy. Although a lie could supposedly run around the world before the truth had got its boots on*, yet when push came to shove there was nothing like solid verifiable truths if you needed to talk your way out of a sticky situation. A good truth could kick even the most convincing lie in the metaphorical groin with said boots, and the more solid those boots were the more damage they could prevent.

Adrien combined this field philosophy of his with a more practical approach of "when in Rome…" and a solution presented itself momentarily. He went to his computer and started sweeping police database in search of suitable candidates to impersonate. Soon he found a really promising one. The guy was a skilled thief, about his age and posture, operated some time ago and was presumed dead after his last heist went terribly wrong. His attire was also quite convenient and much to Adrien's liking.

He could see how he could combine his training ninja outfit and his very accurate Batman costume from last Halloween (courtesy of his girlfriend's connections in the fashion world). After an hour with scissors and needle the suit was at least presentable although still needed a few adjustments as it felt… incomplete. Now, what was that Chloe always said when he was preparing his outfits before going under cover? _'You can't go wrong with excessive accessories. That way people will see the accessories and not you.'_ The first time she suggested it, he thought it was just fashion vlogger's ramble, but he took the advice and it worked beyond his expectations. As it turned out his girlfriend had better insights into how this whole camouflage was supposed to work than many of his tutors in all the courses he took in his life.

So what could he do to make the suit more… memorable than him? Adrien thought of the thief's nickname and clicked his fingers. He quickly went to the closet where he kept all his detective stuff and opened a drawer. He fished out two black cat-ear hairpins from the large box containing all his "under cover" slash "Halloween" accessories and pinned them to his head. On second thought he added a long black belt, but he decided to buckle it tightly around his waist and to let the end drop down behind his back in a tail-like manner. The effect was oddly satisfying and natural. But he still needed something to cover his very, hah, charact _agrestic_ face.

Well, being a heir of a detective empire had its perks. One of them was the access to the newest gadgets and spy gear. He opened another drawer and pulled out an inconspicuous black box. Inside he found an innocent looking slick black goggles set with green glass. They were self-supporting, he just needed to press a switch and they were set on his eyes effortlessly. Adrien left the other switches for further inspection sometime later. The goggles were like a mask and effectively covered the upper half of his face including his forehead, nose and cheeks, as they needed to adhere somewhere to support their weight.

He inspected his reflection in the mirror and grinned at the figure clad in black, with green cat like eyes. He felt almost like Bruce Wayne, minus meddlesome Morgan Freeman. But still something was missing.

Then Adrien's eyes widened at sudden revelation. The MacGyver orb! Of course, that would fit just perfectly. It was a golden round pendant, though in fact it was another gadget, cunningly concealing a few mini scale tools useful to industrious private investigators, who sometimes found themselves in need for a picklock, a screwdriver or a lighter. It was a present from Chloe. The girl had an eye for odd but useful things. She spotted it while attending a fashion expo in Asia and pulled a few strings to get her hands on the prototype, which she then had customized with her boyfriend's profession in mind.

When she finally showed it to him, jokingly calling it "the MacGyver orb", the young detective nearly jumped out of his skin. He absolutely adored MacGyver in early childhood. He memorized almost every episode he had watched with his father, the original series being Gabriel's favorite show next to classic whodunits (which usually got Gabriel a comment from Susanne, how he was always at work).

Becoming MacGyver was his second aware career choice, made when he was about six (before that he wanted to be a monster truck). But then baby Adrien learnt a few important lessons. One, that you shouldn't built a fire in your own room to test a solution from a TV show. Two, that secret agencies weren't keen on hiring six year olds, no matter how cunning they were. Three, that said secret agencies were even less keen on six year olds sneaking into their headquarters to prove their point. And four, that even six year olds with most forgiving and indulgent parents could get grounded for trying too hard. By then his enthusiasm noticeably cooled slowly developing into adoration for science in general, which came surprisingly in handy in the detective profession he eventually decided to pursue. His parents couldn't stay mad at him long so that childhood fascination soon became just another anecdote although it earned him an endearing feline nickname as his proud mother started to call him 'her sneaky little kitty'. Now that he thought of it, he was soon going to be one again.

Adrien finally located the orb in a yellow box. He checked its contents and attached it to the zipper at the front of his suit. He looked into the mirror again and grinned, satisfied with the results. The outfit and the identity were ready. All he needed now was a reasonable excuse to pay a visit to a certain Chinese.

* * *

'Fu is definitely losing it.' Tikki whispered frantically into Plagg's ear. They were in the room next to the impromptu ward the girl was lying in. They had to keep their voices down, they had to be careful. The whole of Master Fu's headquarters was just one giant amplifier, the most silent steps echoing between countless walls of empty rooms and corridors hours after the actual stepping was done. 'He's never been on the sane side of the street, but it's getting worse!'

Plagg nodded glumly, peeking out of the room to make sure no one was eavesdropping on them. 'I don't like it either, Tikki,' he murmured back. 'That last time was a close call for the girl. If it wasn't for her exceptional luck she would have been marmalade by now and all over the news.'

The woman looked him up and down. He seemed to be tired and worried, just like her. His usually deeply dark skin had definite grey overtones. His black hair that he used to keep neatly combed now were a mess. The black polo shirt he was wearing was crumpled, and his charcoal cargo pants were stained. It was pretty obvious that Fu had been riding his back the last couple of weeks.

'I'll see what I can do for her, when Trixx comes back with my stuff. I reckon there's not much physical damage, no broken bones, no ruptures. I suspect some bruising, but I will have to remove her suit to check on that. Fu gave me permission, so I'll be needing you to stay on guard. You know the rules.'

Plagg sighed and shook his head, 'Is there anything more we can do for her? Shouldn't we let somebody know about this?'

'Plagg, be reasonable. We don't know who she is. We don't know where she lives. We don't even know her face!' Tikki's voice was serious and drenched in concern. 'The only thing I can do is to get her up so that she could clean the mess herself. Running about and trying to be helpful can actually cause more damage, you know that.' She snapped but the dark man didn't reply, just clenched his fists, his green eyes gleaming with rage.

They returned to the bedroom to check on the girl. 'She can't go on like this alone,' she whispered. 'Please, talk to Wayzz. He's the only one capable of knocking some sense into Fu.'

Plagg put his muscular shoulder around the woman to comfort her as he murmured into her ear. 'I overheard Duusu, when she dropped by today to report. Master Fu wasn't pleased with the news. Looks like Hawkie took his last case and after that he's retiring, so…' Tikki gasped, covering her mouth with her hand, while her companion wrinkled his nose. 'Something big is coming. Fu finally put the word out. We're recruiting.'

* * *

 _AN: So? What do you say?_ _Leave a comment if you can, they inspire me and keep me going._

 _A Guest asked in their review if I could write something about my source of inspiration for this story. I could, but it's like really, really weird. One of my favorite authors on FF once told me "My head is a really weird place". Well, guess what!? Turns out, mine is pretty weird too ;)_

 _So all I'm willing to admit is that it may have something to do with a magenta dress and the title of the first episode of 'Sherlock'. There is also a possibility that it was a result of alien abduction ;P_

 _If you want to scream at me about Adrien's girlfriend or something else, or possibly just say hi, you can find me on tumblr xP_

 _*Quote by Terry Pratchett, "The Truth"_


	3. Chapter 3 A Lady in Red

_AN: I'm sorry this took so long. Real life attacked, no surprise really. One of the reasons for that was the chapter itself - it just kept getting longer and longer._

 _Anyway… I hope this is worth the wait._

* * *

 **Chapter 3 "A Lady in Red"**

The first time Marinette opened her eyes there was darkness. There was also heat and pain. A lot of pain. She groaned and touched her head. She saw stars. She tried to shift her numb body into a more comfortable position and every muscle screamed in objection.

She had no idea where she was or who she was at the moment. Not that she had amnesia. It's just that when you lead a double life and experience a blackout, when you come around it's not always obvious who you're supposed to be. Darkness and empty spaces could indicate she was at Fu's, but when she touched her aching body she found no suit, although her mask was still in place. Not a good sign. Still, the very last thing she remembered was collapsing at Fu's door, so she probably was still under his care.

One more try to move her body made her cry from pain and fall on the bed again, covered in sweat. Almost instantly there were footsteps and the creak of opening door.

Marinette tried to lift herself up on her elbows, tried to turn to the person approaching, but another shot of pain that ran over her body was enough of a punishment to discourage her from further attempts. She didn't even have enough strength left to scream, but a broken moan escaped her lips.

Her consciousness was fading again under the growing wave of pain. She barely registered someone at her side, whispering soft words she didn't understand. She felt a hand hovering over her stomach, her chest, moving to her face and stopping just above her forehead. Two fingers were gently pressed against her temple and the last thing she remembered before passing out again was that soft voice speaking through the haze of pain. _'Dormitabis.'_

* * *

Adrien was perched up on the rooftop across the street from the warehouse that served as Fu's headquarters. He shook his head to get rid of the dullness after Alya tried to shout his ear off through the phone. She didn't like his plan, to say the least. The piece of mind he got was big enough to choke him dead. But young Agreste stood his ground. He'd refused to reveal any details of his plan – where he was heading, what was his cover, what were his clues. The sleuth left her a time triggered message on corporate intranet. If he wasn't back to delete it himself in a few hours, Alya would know all those details (including a photo of his current attire to prepare her for the eventual shock) and hopefully she would be able to come and save his sorry butt or what was left of it by that time.

Of course he had every intention of making it out of Fu's alive and with any luck also in possession of knowledge on Ms. Dupain-Cheng's whereabouts. Yet it wasn't exactly best practice to attempt what he was attempting without even a shadow of backup.

He went through his plan again. Even he had to admit it wasn't much of a plan, more of a sequence of goals: 'enter', 'find Ladybug', 'run'. Oh, and 'try not to get discovered or killed in the process' would be a nice bonus. He didn't even have any idea how to gain access to the premises. Usually he was lucky in such circumstances and solutions presented themselves on the spot when needed. It was just he somehow overlooked the fact than now he was apparently a black cat, and those weren't exactly the embodiment of good fortune.

That must have been the reason he was still stuck on that roof an hour and a half later without a clue what to do next. That also must have been the reason he dropped his guard enough to let somebody sneak up on him without being noticed until they were at throw's length. A pebble hit him lightly on the head and dropped to the street below.

'Ouch,' he hissed and turned to see where it came from.

Well, so much for secretive plans. A slender figure was leaning nonchalantly against a chimney, arms crossed and one foot resting on the wall behind. Her rusty outfit blended with orange bricks making her barely visible. Her hair was of a similar shade of copper, pulled tightly into a ponytail and dyed white at the tip. It reminded Adrien of a fox brush. Apparently to complete the look she wore black sneakers, black fingerless gloves and ludicrous purple Lennon style shades.

The woman let out a small chuckle, pushed herself from the wall and walked towards the disguised detective.

'Hey, hot stuff,' she said eyeing him up and down. 'Are you a stray kitten in distress?' she asked, her lips widening in a smirk. Her tone was playful, but her eyes were wary and Adrien had no doubts that she was a lookout. And he was screwed.

'Oh, hi… hello to you,' he squeaked, but then remembered himself. He stood up, stretched to his full height and loomed over the woman. 'What is such a lovely lady doing on a roof on a day like this?' he purred slyly, pitching his voice low, slightly roguish.

She looked him straight in the eyes, unabashed. 'I asked you first, Mister Cat.' Now there was a hint of threat behind her words.

'I… I was in the neighborhood and suddenly I got this idea to pay my respect to the most renowned crime lord of Paris…' he ventured summoning his most impish grin.

'You don't say,' she snickered, punching him slightly on the shoulder. He really should have thought this through. Hopelessly he took one last glance at Fu's headquarters and was about to leg it, when she burst into laughter.

'Relax, handsome. It's okay. We just didn't expect people to show up so soon,' she gave him a playful nudge in the ribs and turned around to the staircase.

Adrien just stood there, dumbfounded and gaped at her with his mouth parted. The woman winked at him. 'Are you coming or what? They're waiting for you.'

* * *

The second time Marinette opened her eyes there were voices, whispering in the darkness. The girl noticed she was now in a different, more comfortable position, lying on her side and under a soft cotton sheet. Although she still could feel the pain, it subsided into a dull throbbing, allowing her to process other sensations without wishing to instantly cease her existence.

Smell was the first sense to wake up. Marinette inhaled the most relieving scent of her life – freshly baked bread. Warmth. Home. But it couldn't be home. Her other senses were informing her of vast spaces surrounding her, of unfamiliar chill pouring from the direction of the door, of unknown background sounds, of rusty taste of the air. She reached forward to find any source of light and a bowl full of smoldering herbs was sent flying to the floor. A loud clatter filled the cavernous room with overwhelming noise. And suddenly there was no more bread, no more warmth. And the blinding pain was back threefold. Marinette shrieked in convulsion.

Familiar hands were back over her body murmuring their strange spells and relieving the pain. As Marinette slowly drifted back into limbo she heard another voice, a low purr.

'Is she going to be all right? What's wrong with her, Tikki?'

The whispering stopped with a sigh and a worried voice answered. 'I wish I knew, Plagg. I wish I knew.'

* * *

Thankfully the ginger lady was talkative enough for Adrien to come up with a plausible explanation of his presence on the roof before he was shoved into a dark office room and to the front of a huge desk. Behind the desk was a short, bald man in a plain green shirt that gave the whites of his eyes a slightly yellowish shade. He turned in his seat to talk to the redhead.

'Thank you, Trixx. Now get back to your post. I'll take it from here,' he said.

'Oh, that's too bad.' She cooed. 'I was hoping I could get to know our cute new colleague a little better,' she murmured and casted Adrien one last look. She blew him a kiss and left, ostentatiously swinging her hips and her pony tail.

When the door closed after her the short man coughed loudly and unpleasantly, the sound dry and leathery. Then he raised from his seat and invited Adrien to a couple of comfortably looking armchairs in the far corner of the room. He moved with painstakingly slow and patient calmness, but the boy was under the impression that should the need arise this calmness could turn into unstoppable, albeit still measured force. The man bowed with his hands clasped in front of his face and motioned his guest to sit down.

'Well, young man. Did you bring your resume? Any credentials?' he asked. 'With your looks I wouldn't be surprised if you brought headshots as well.' The man watched Adrien's reaction closely. The blonde said nothing staring at him in surprise. Whatever he was expecting, it certainly wasn't the HR talk.

'Relax, newbie. I'm just kidding.' The man in the green shirt chuckled through another fit of cough, as the boy sighed in relief. 'Of course usually we have these interviews by appointment only. And after a recommendation. But let's say your case is special. We've heard about your achievements, although I must add how surprised I am to see you in person considering the latest gossip.' He drawled, while Adrien's stomach sunk. They looked him up. Of course they had to check him before they let him into their headquarters. Never was Adrien more glad about using a real person as a cover-up story. With a bit of luck he would be able to convince the man he just had staged that fatal accident to get the police off his back.

'I'm Wayzz by the way. Of course you don't have to tell me your name, Catsanova.'

Adrien winced at the terrible nickname and clenched his fists. Now _that_ was a trap. 'Please don't use that lousy name straight from the tabloids. If there was any way to persuade the journos to change it without revealing myself, believe me, I would do it in a second.' The young sleuth knew his counterpart never had used that name. The way the media presented the story was an insult to all criminals. Wayzz nodded slightly, acknowledging that his interviewee had just pasted the first test.

'Of course. My apologies. May I ask by what name should I address you from now on?' the old man inquired. Adrien was prepared for that question too.

'Chat Noir,' he said simply. He thought it up the day before after completing his attire. It had a nice ring to it – classy, but also a bit edgy.

'Chat Noir,' Wayzz said slowly, weighing the name on his tongue. 'Pleased to meet you.'

The feline detective just nodded silently. It paid off not to be too talkative in such circumstances, as he was well aware. You never knew where your tongue would take you – keep the words and the information you share to bare minimum, and let the other person fill all the blanks by themselves.

'So... Chat Noir. You want to join our little gang?' the man continued, receiving another nod from Adrien.

'I'm sure a man with your skills could be a valuable asset. However…' he made a dramatic pause, but the blonde just raised a brow and sat still, perfectly composed. 'However we cannot simply take you on board, you know.' Wayzz stopped to cast a careful glance towards his guest.

Adrien was ready again. He didn't move but remained leaning slightly forward to indicate his interest but not any sign of eagerness. If his father could see him right now he would be utterly proud of how much his son took after him (granted, he probably wouldn't be proud that Adrien went into Fu's without any back-up and reasonable plan, but still proud enough of the quality of composure he presented). The boy politely kept quiet.

'I hope you understand, that even though we've heard of you, we still need to verify whether that knowledge is valid.'

'That is perfectly understandable, sir.' Adrien straightened his back withdrawing a little. He kept his eyes on his interviewer, but still didn't elaborate.

The man sighed and rubbed his eyes. He was beginning to feel irritated at the little input the boy contributed to this conversation. Still, keeping one's emotions in check was a very valuable skill in this line of work, and as much as Wayzz cultivated it himself, he liked and valued it greatly in others too, especially ones as young as Chat Noir.

'Before we start, would you like some tea? Coffee?' Wayzz asked instead, predicting that interviewing the boy could take a while.

Adrien politely declined, but now it dawned on him that the whole interview business that was his pass inside could take much of his valuable time. He tried to find a short-cut.

'Master Fu won't be joining us?' he asked carefully keeping his voice respectful at the mention of the crime lord.

The man raised his brown, surprised. 'No. Master has more important things on his mind than recruiting staff. But if you make it through the whole… process he'll be the one making the final decision.'

The slight pause didn't go unnoticed by Adrien. It might indicate some… difficulties or uncommon practice. He would have to be ready to improvise then. Before Wayzz could speak again, he decided to take the initiative.

'Can you tell me, what the whole… process consists of, sir?'

The man shrugged noncommittally and waved a hand. 'Oh, you know, the usual. There's an interview with some very tricky questions…' he winked at the boy. 'And then there's a physical and fitness test.' He concluded carefully registering his interviewee's reaction.

Adrien nodded silently, though inside he felt a little anxious. This not only could take long. It could be unpredictable. But it was still the best chance he got to move unobtrusively within this building, the best chance to look for Marinette Dupain-Cheng, for Ladybug.

'Let's begin, shall we?' Wayzz said, fully aware that the process started the moment Chat Noir was spotted on the rooftop. Then he smiled pleasingly, thinking of how terse his guest was so far. He would have to do something about it. After all he was the one in control here.

'Chat Noir, please tell me more about yourself…'

* * *

When Marinette woke up for the third time she didn't open her eyes at all, trying to capture her dream.

 _She was moving through rooftops for her latest heist. She flew through the darkness, danced above the city, tasting the freedom, the possibility to go anywhere and everywhere, unnoticed, unquestioned, unattached. She stopped for a moment to regain her breath and to admire the view of the Eiffel Tower, her favorite place in the city._

 _As she stood there drinking in the sight of the structure, generously lit and glowing from the inside she felt someone watching her. They kept their distance, she could neither hear, nor see them. She sensed them, like a ripple in space. Ladybug closed her eyes to regain her night vision after staring for too long at the lights of the tower. Taking her time she turned around, carefully inspecting her surroundings but saw nothing._

 _And then, at the corner of her eye she caught a gleam of light. Green. Impossibly green eyes watching her from the darkness._

She woke up still feeling them sweeping over her, but the sensation quickly started to fade. The harder Marinette tried, the less she remembered. And when she finally slipped into limbo again the green eyes were long forgotten.

* * *

The man named Wayzz led Adrien through a maze of corridors up to a large dusty hall. Pale light seeped through wide but short windows placed high under the roof. The hall was padded with sparring mats – some of them on the floor, some on the walls. A large cabinet stood at the far end of the room, accompanied by a few smaller closets and chests placed under the walls. By the look of it, they contained training equipment. Adrien could see some weapons that were too big to fit into the boxes, stacked at the side of the cabinet. Some he did recognize from his training and interests, like the katana or tachi swords, escrima sticks, a wide range of staffs. He shuddered when he spotted some kamas and sais that looked extremely sharp. With that collection the punching bags that hung from the ceiling in one corner looked strangely out of place.

The young sleuth's attention was drawn to a set of perches and shelves scattered through the hall – some attached to walls, some fixed to the ceiling. Some of them had handles on the underside. There were also numerous hoops welded to the metal beams supporting the roof. The complex pattern of such spots allowed to cross the room without touching the ground. Adrien felt a sudden urge to try that route.

Apparently this was the place where he was to take the fitness test, although he didn't notice any equipment that could serve this purpose, like treadmills, barbells and such. The room reminded him more of a practice dojo, than of a gym, now that he took a good look at it.

He heard another person entering the hall after the two of them, but decided not to turn around yet, mostly because that newcomer was barely making a sound. If it wasn't for Adrien's exceptional hearing he probably wouldn't have picked those subtle signals of a new presence – intake of breath, a rustle of clothing, a crinkling of skin. Instead he chose to inhale the strange new smell that dominated the room – a mixture of tin, dust, sweat and…

'Cheese?' Adrien asked raising a brow in amusement. Not a scent usually associated with a place like that.

'Do you have something against cheese, kid?' A low, grumpy voice snarled at the boy.

'I hate cheese,' The blonde admitted turning around to face the newcomer. 'The smell gets everywhere, doesn't it?' he added flashing the man a lopsided grin. He was met with a sinister smirk and a pair of tired dark-green eyes. The man was almost as tall as Adrien, and like him he was dressed in black from head to toe. His hair and skin were dark too, which in overall gave an impression that it wasn't a human being but a shadow standing at the door. He was muscular, but not bulky. There was something animal about his demeanor, something predatory, that brought to mind words like panther, tiger or jaguar. He moved with subtle, soft grace, despite the way his well trained muscles flexed under his clothes. The detective thought that if this was a comic book or a cartoon, the man should have a large neon sign over his head that screamed 'DANGER' in big green letters.

The shadow-man slowly surveyed Adrien, carefully inspecting every detail available to his eyes. It wasn't a friendly gaze. When their eyes met again Adrien felt the hair raising at the back of his neck. He summoned every bit of confidence and bravado his pugnacious youth supplied him with and returned the look with a threat of his own.

Wayzz took no notice of the stare contest. 'Newbie, may I introduce you to Plagg. He's going to test your fighting skills.'

Plagg smiled at the boy. That is to say the corners of his lips curled up, the lips parted and the teeth were bared. Was it Adrien's imagination or were the man's canines sharper and pointier that on average human? The overall impression was as far from friendly as possible, probably best described by adjectives like hostile, malevolent or intimidating.

The boy gulped. Everything was a test, including this smile, he thought. They are watching you, they are checking you. One false move and you're fish food.

Adrien took a few steps back to the center of the dojo. He straightened up, flexed his arms, set his legs wider for better support, leaning slightly forward. Then he casted the shadow-man a defiant look and raised his right hand, motioning his fingers in a universal gesture of beckoning. He was ready. Or so he thought.

* * *

When Marinette opened her eyes for the seventh time there was no pain, no darkness and no whispers. There was a familiar figure by the bed.

'Welcome back, Ladybug.' She said with a soft smile.

'Tikki?' Marinette sighed in relief. Tikki meant safety, care and trust. So she was at Fu's after all. That was convenient to some extent, but in other aspects could present a problem. Like for example…

'How long was I out?' The girl pulled herself to a sitting position.

Tikki's gaze dropped to her lap. 'Almost three weeks,' she said at last.

Oh. Definitely not good. Her parents probably stopped freaking out after the first three or four days and by now would be beyond despair. She hoped they didn't do anything stupid, like hiring private investigators or making a deal with the devil himself. That could really complicate matters for her.

'How long you think till I fully recover?' she asked weakly.

'Maybe another week or so.' The healer shrugged. 'Most of your external injuries are already healed. The worst bruises should have faded completely by then which would save you some explaining.' She added patting the girl's hand. A tear rolled down her cheek.

'Why do I get the impression there's something you're not telling me.' Marinette asked gently but she firmly looked her friend in the eyes.

Tikki's breath hitched in her throat and she started to sob. 'I… there were a few days when… I wasn't sure if you'd wake up at all,' she admitted sniffling. 'I've treated you as best as I could. But you just wouldn't wake up. There was this fever and no contact and so much pain.' Tikki's sobs turned into uncontrollable wailing. 'Oh, Ladybug! I was so worried! I've never seen anything like that.'

Marinette was shaken to the bone. She was out for three weeks, apparently in very bad condition. She didn't remember any of that, but the sight of Tikki so distressed was unnerving. The girl reached out and pulled her friend into an embrace.

'Thank you. Whatever you did it worked. I feel better.' She said soothingly, gently stroking Tikki's hair. Soon the sobbing was replaced by sniffling and then died completely.

The woman broke from the hug and shook her head. 'You still need your rest and I have no idea what was the reason for being unconscious for so long. I didn't do anything to bring you back. It happened by itself.'

'Tikki, I'm sure it was you who did this miracle. I really feel better. I don't remember feeling bad at all. Sure I can tell I'm weak. Anyone would be after lying for three weeks, right? But I'm okay, I promise.' Marinette sent the woman her most charming smile. 'Now, let's do something. Let's go somewhere. Enough of lying in bed!'

'You sure you're feeling that much better?' Tikki had a hard time believing the girl after watching and treating her for those long, long days.

'Yes, Tikki. And if I spend another minute in this bed I'm going to go nuts. I need to walk, I need to move around. I need to go outside for a minute, to see the sky. I need to be somewhere else.' She paused trying to process another sensation not quite new but very sobering. 'And I could _really_ use the bathroom right _now_.' She ended nearly leaping out of the bed.

Tikki helped her up and to the bathroom door in the corner of the room. The healer allowed her a moment of privacy and then came back with towels, herbal soap and instructions how to attend to her injuries.

Marinette stepped into the shower. It felt like the water was bringing her back to life, washing away the numbness, the shock, the limbo. When she finally closed the faucet and wrapped herself in a red fluffy robe she felt like a new woman.

She found Tikki busy with her healing equipment deposited on the dresser. The woman turned around and asked, 'Shall I bring you something to eat or would you like to take a stroll to the kitchens?'

'A stroll would be nice, thank you. You'll join me, right?' Marinette asked putting on a fresh Ladybug suit and drying her long ink-black hair with a towel.

'It would be a pleasure even if Fu hadn't forbidden me to leave your side.' The woman replied in a respectful voice. Ah, now that they were leaving the healer's den things were official again. Tikki's gaze spoke volumes without her uttering a single sound. _'Be wary. Be wise. Keep it to yourself,'_ it said.

The sounds of fight reached them as they were nearing the kitchens. Something heavy hit a wall, something wooden was broken, something metallic scattered on the ground with loud clangs. And if that wasn't enough there were also screams, grunts, battle cries.

Ladybug sent Tikki a fearful look. 'What's happening?' she whispered ready to flee. Tikki put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

'Don't worry. I'm sure it's nothing dangerous. Fu's recruiting. It's probably a part of an interview.' She explained, remembering that Plagg was called by Wayzz an hour earlier.

The two of them took a turn and found themselves at the entrance to the noisy room. Marinette gasped when she saw two figures, both clad in black, covered in dust, fighting fiercely among the debris of what used to be the practice dojo furnishings. She stood there hypnotized by their swift movements, by the grace of their rough dance. In a blink of an eye the higher of the two men took a somersault to escape another blow and landed effortlessly in front of her.

He turned around surprised with an audience and stared at her with a mixture of awe and dread. Marinette took a look at his black suit, at the tail, at the mask and the cat ears, at the thatch of messy hair now grey and thick with dust and cobwebs. As her brain caught up with the sight, she let out a strangled choke and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Last thing she remembered were Tikki's hands reaching for her just as she hit the floor.

* * *

Adrien was taking a beating of his lifetime. On reflection, he probably shouldn't have tried to offend the man with some not very inventive puns and insults, some of which concerned cheese. He thought that this strategy could distract his opponent and thus make him more prone to mistakes.

Plagg didn't make mistakes, however he mercilessly took advantage of each and every error that Adrien had made.

The boy didn't know how long they had been fighting. It could be minutes, it could be hours. He was thrown up the walls, chests and equipment, knocked down to the mats, hit countless number of times. He served as Plagg's duster for all the dark corners of the hall, collecting an impressive amount of grey dirt and cobwebs mostly in his hair. The blonde danced through the dojo escaping punches and kicks, dodging blows and trying to lay some of his own, pulling every dirty trick he had picked up from the Butterflies. He managed quite a few impressive strikes though they didn't seem to affect the fury named Plagg the way Adrien hoped. They slowed him down, but instead of discouraging him, they enraged him further.

The assailant was a one-man war machine, a god of destruction. Vicious, furious, painfully effective and unforgiving. At first Adrien considered surrendering, but somewhere along the fight something snapped inside him when he felt the metallic taste of blood in his mouth. He swore not to let that savage have the upper hand, even if it would be his last vow. Plagg would have to pry his victory from Adrien's cold dead hands. Admittedly a few more minutes and that might be the case. He was tired, he was slowing down.

Adrien launched himself in a backflip to escape another blow and landed at the entrance. He wasn't aware there were people watching from the corridor. The boy turned around and looked into incredibly blue eyes of Ladybug, surrounded by her red mask. Oh, god. Those sapphires were hypnotizing, mesmerizing, enthralling. Adrien was falling, falling into the blueness, already a goner. His lips parted in astonishment, his heart thundered heavy in his chest. If he was panting from the fight before, now he felt all the oxygen was pumped out from his lungs.

He froze in shock, the hell Plagg let loose on him forgotten in an instant. But before he had time to react, Ladybug paled like she'd seen a ghost and fainted.

Adrien was about to help the shorter woman in red dress who tried to pick the girl up, when he felt fingers pressing to a point between the crook of his neck and collarbone and the world went black.

* * *

 _AN: More action in this chapter. **How did you like it? Please let me know. Your comments mean a world to me!**_

 _Also - did you happen to notice my one-shot for MariChat May - identity reveal theme: "Mari, Chat and the Prank of Pranks"? Check it out, if you haven't. I was told it's quite funny xD_


	4. Chapter 4 A Man in a Flower Shirt

_Author's Note: Three and a half month, huh? But finally "Student" gets an update. Consider this a birthday present from me to you. The birthday is mine, the present is yours. I find it a good way to celebrate, don't you think?_

* * *

 **Chapter 4 "A Man in a Flower Shirt"**

' _Ladybug~…'_

' _Ladybug~… bug~… ug~… ug~…'_

' _Laaadyybuug~… adybug~… adybug~…'_

The whispers and weeps echoing through healer's den flowed over Ladybug's ears. For the second time that day she felt she was emerging from dark slumber, not quite certain if she wanted to wake up. The smell surrounding her was refreshing and seemed to prompt her to open her eyes, but on the other hand the warmth of her nest among the cushions and blankets was so tempting she couldn't resist to bury herself deeper.

' _Ladybug, please wake up, my dear_.'

Marinette stirred slightly on the bed.

' _Laaadyyybuuug~..._ '

She turned her head to the source of the whisper and the rustle of feathers that came with it. Tikki never used any feathers. Marinette's brain prodded her to raise alarm.

' _Laaadyyyybuuuuug~… wake up, Laaaadyyybuggg~…'_

She felt a hand reaching to her face and touching her mask. That's not allowed here, she thought defiantly, popping her eyes open in a blink.

A blurred smile wet with tears, mohawk of iridescent green and cobalt hair, golden ornaments jingling lightly. Marinette shook her head and adjusted her vision to focus properly on the blue figure sitting on her bed.

'Hey there, Ladybug,' her companion's smile widened and softened, her voice clearly relieved but with a hint of abashment. 'I was starting to get worried you'd never wake up.'

Marinette emerged from the tangled blankets raising herself on her elbows. 'Duusu? What are you doing here?' she asked eyeing the blue sleeved hand as it quickly retreated from its way to her face. 'Where's Tikki?'

Duusu quickly hid her hand in the folds of her blue robe and looked away. 'She's at Fu's with that cat boy,' she replied not daring to look Ladybug in the eyes after getting caught almost meddling with her mask.

'Oh,' Marinette perked up. She felt anxious at the reminder of the black-clad figure and couldn't exactly tell why. She didn't even remember how he looked like, but recalled a disturbing feeling of familiarity mixed with dread that swept over her just before she fainted. One thing she was sure, was that he didn't do anything to cause that.

'Can you tell me more about him?' she decided to find out more about that mysterious person.

The blue woman finally gathered the courage meet Ladybug's questioning gaze. 'Sorry, but I can't. I just came in and Plagg asked me to watch over you, while he joined Tikki for the final phase. All I know is that there was a huge fight between Plagg and that guy,' she suspended her voice and then snickered. 'Although Trixx tells me he's apparently insanely handsome or at least those bits of him that are visible under that strange outfit.'

Marinette felt herself blushing behind the red mask, the reason for that obscured even to her. Duusu seemed not to notice as she asked, 'Anyway, how do you feel? Do you need something? Should I fetch Tikki?'

The girl shook her head in protest. She still felt weak, like after being sick for a long time, but otherwise was fine. Then she remembered that she probably should start on staging her comeback to civilian life and she would need a supplier. 'Actually, I could use some advice and I probably need to ask Trixx for a favor.'

Duusu raised a brow. 'Oh. Maybe I could help you?' she quickly offered, determined to use that opportunity for her own purposes.

* * *

Tikki was among the last Kwamis to meet Chat Noir. Fu always demanded new staff should take a physical, and as she was the closest thing they had to a doctor, she was responsible for that part of recruitment.

Of course she wouldn't be checking his health the conventional way. They didn't care that much about that. Also if the boy had survived Plagg, he was probably as healthy as he could get.

Tikki's actual job was to check on his energy. Fu would be double checking by himself of course. He had his plans and ideas, but he expected Tikki to rule out those inadequate or untrustworthy.

They could be a gang, he used to say, they could engage in crime, which required certain skills and a flexible understanding of law and ethics, but there still was a line. A line, that should cut all the madmen, freaks, psychos and whatnot. It was a gang, Fu would say, but it was a _respectable_ one.

The newcomer was brought to Fu's office and lied on the sofa. He was still unconscious which would make her job much easier. Tikki put her hands over the recruit's chest and started moving them above his body.

Plagg was watching her with interest, leaning nonchalantly on the armrest. The healer positioned her hands again above the boy's heart and froze. She moved them to his head and raised a brow. She looked at Plagg, her features carefully blank, but he could see the gleam in her eyes.

'What is it?' he whispered.

'His energy…' Tikki hesitated. 'I've witnessed something like that only once before, during my own training…' She trailed off seemingly lost in the memory.

'What did you feel?' Plagg asked impatiently. He had his own theories about this so called Chat Noir, that he kept to himself, and was curious of Tikki's opinion. 'Is he a loony? A brute?'

'What?! No! Nothing like that.' The woman protested indignantly at his suggestions. 'It's just that… his energy…'

'Out with it, woman!'

'It matches Ladybug's energy signature one to one.' She blurted out.

There was a loud whistle, as Plagg drew his breath before asking with a broad grin, 'Which Ladybug?'

* * *

After making some arrangements with Duusu Marinette felt faint again. She stayed comfortably stretched on the bed, her eyes wandering over Tikki's room, stopping when she found something interesting and sweeping over the mundane furnishings that Fu had installed everywhere. Despite her efforts her thoughts kept coming back to the cat boy. She felt she should have recognized him, but at the same time was almost certain she had seen him for the first time in her life. Marinette decided that she probably shouldn't trust him even if her gut feeling told her otherwise. Her musings of black clad fighters lulled her to sleep, but she was interrupted with another visit.

'Ladybug?' A low murmur at the door announced the arrival of a new guest. 'How do you feel?'

'Plagg?' Marinette rubbed her eyes, trying to get rid of visions of another black figure. 'Is that you?'

'Yes, bug. It's me,' the man said softly, closing the door behind him.

'Where's Tikki?'

'Talking to Fu,' Plagg pulled himself a chair and sat next to the bed. He stretched his back and arms and then ran his fingers through his still dusty hair. 'She asked me to keep you company,' he said with a smile and took a good look at the girl.

'What happened?' he gently asked after a while. Marinette just shrugged. Where would she begin to explain that it was the cat boy that unwillingly caused her distress? Plagg was her friend and he often got extremely protective when some boys at the yoga classes tried to get too familiar with her. Telling him now that the newcomer might be the reason of her state wasn't a good idea.

'My guess is Tikki let you get up a bit too soon,' Plagg suggested brushing some hair from her face and checking for fever.

'Umm… probably,' the girl agreed. She hesitated but her curiosity got the better of her. 'Hey, Plagg? Before I've blacked out I think I saw a cat? A boy dressed like a cat?' There, that was inconspicuous enough.

'Yup. Did he scare you?' Plagg chuckled good-naturedly. 'I wouldn't have thought, you're shaken so easily, bug,' he teased.

Marinette felt heat crawling down from under her mask. She wasn't sure if it was a response to Plagg's teasing or to something else entirely.

'I wasn't scared,' she said defiantly. 'I was just wondering who he was.'

'That's our newest recruit,' her friend replied, still grinning. 'Fu just took him into training.'

Ladybug whipped her head at that, but Plagg didn't notice. He rubbed his neck absentmindedly. 'Mind you there isn't much that boy needs to be taught.'

'Oh?' Marinette had to admit that was quite a fight she had caught a glimpse of.

'He was quite a challenge,' Plagg admitted after another thoughtful pause, 'but there are still some tricks this old tomcat can pull out of the bag.'

'What do you mean?'

The man clasped his palms and stood up, clearly preparing to leave. 'I mean he definitely knows his karate, if you catch my drift, and also a few other martial arts,' he said with a wink.

'He does?' It was the first time Marinette heard Plagg complimenting anyone on their fighting skills. 'Who is he anyway?'

'Dunno,' the dark man shrugged. 'We didn't really get to talk before and now he's at Fu's. I should probably join them now that I've checked on you.'

He was already at the door, but he turned around with a wicked smile that meant he had just thought of a new way to tease her. 'Why are you suddenly so interested? Did he caught your eye or something?'

Marinette met his eyes twinkling with mirth and shook her head, feigning disinterest. 'What? No way. Who would want to date _a criminal_ ,' she giggled at his scandalized expression. Two could play this game, huh? 'I thought he looked familiar is all.'

* * *

Chat Noir woke up in a comfortable chair that smelled slightly of herbs and old rooms. Some attempts had been made to brush the dust off of him but he noticed to his relief that his disguise hadn't been tempered with. There was a small table next to his chair containing a cup and a saucer of delicate porcelain. A brown liquid was steaming out of it, spreading a relaxing and divine scent over the room. The detective had to fight the urge to take a gulp out of it, even though his throat was dry. There was no telling what they had put in that and what effect would it have on him.

An old Chinese was seated behind an enormous desk opposite and was studying his guest's features with a millennia worth calmness. His red shirt with white flower pattern looked ridiculously out of place in this room full of Asian art and antiques. The boy's gaze was drawn to a huge arras hanging behind the man, an old tapestry with artfully weaved sign of three teachings, reminding Adrien of his last Chinese tutor and his devotion to philosophy.

The old man turned to look at the arras himself.

' _Three teachings-,_ ' he begun in Chinese casting a curious look towards his guest.

'- _harmonious as one,_ ' Adrien finished automatically in the same language, words rolling off his tongue before he could stop himself.

'Ha!' his host replied, pleased with the boy's response. 'You are full of surprises, Chat Noir.' He was smiling kindly, but there was a sharp gleam in his eyes that told Adrien he was still treading over thin ice. This was the crime lord of all Paris, his father's mortal enemy.

The detective decided it was time for his feline charm to come out and play. 'I do what I can,' he said with a grin. He was thankful for the Agrestes' famous nerves of steel that allowed him to keep his composure. He still didn't have the slightest idea what happened after the fight, although he suspected that he would be fine. If they wanted to silence him because of showing up unannounced in their headquarters or because he saw Ladybug, they would have already done that without bothering to wake him up.

'Indeed,' the old man said thoughtfully, scratching his chin. 'I'm Master Fu, by the way. But I imagine you already guessed that.'

Chat Noir bowed with respect. 'It's an honor to meet you, _Shifu_.'

Master Fu motioned to the untouched cup. 'Drink up, young man. You need to recover after that hapless incident in the dojo.'

The boy hesitantly reached for the cup.

'Don't worry, we're not going to poison you,' the man winked at him, his face wrinkling in amusement. 'This is our healer's finest potion and it's also quite tasty.'

Now it was a matter of honor. Adrien took a careful sip, then another. The taste was peculiar, a bit of honey, a definite note of cayenne, a background of herbs, thyme possibly. With each sip he discovered new tones, the flavors mixing, merging and changing. A pleasant warmth started spreading through his limbs. He downed the rest of the liquid as fast as he dared, feeling vigor returning to his strained muscles and clarity to his clouded head.

Master Fu nodded with satisfaction when the cup was empty and returned to the table.

'Now that you seem to feel better, let me congratulate you on your spectacular performance,' he said looking at the black clad guest over his joined fingers.

'But I lost!' Chat Noir blurted out, confused.

The old Chinese gave a little chuckle at that. 'You didn't. Plagg had to disarm you due to… the accidental audience. Sorry, but we take our privacy very seriously, and at that moment you weren't a part of our group yet,' the man explained.

'I'll be honest with you, boy. You're the first person to survive the cataclysm that goes under the name of Plagg. The first man in the history of this organization still standing after 5 minutes of fight against him. Hell, you laid a few nice blows yourself. You weren't afraid to play dirty and even though our dojo got severely… redecorated during the process it was the best damn fight I've witnessed for years. You gave Plagg a run for his money and there's no one who appreciates it more than me.'

'Oh,' that was extremely flattering in Adrien's opinion. He wasn't overconfident but aware of the level of his fighting skills and if the crime lord Fu complimented them, that really had to mean something. 'Thank you. That's an honor coming from you,' he bowed again.

Master Fu snorted, 'Stop bowing, boy. You look like a duck.'

He stood from the desk and strolled towards the chair. Instead of a traditional bow that the boy expected, he reached out and took Chat's hand. Adrien felt a prickling sensation in his palm, as if it was pierced with a hundred tiny needles, but he firmly squeezed Fu's hand.

'Welcome to our merry gang, Chat Noir,' the man in the flower shirt announced.

* * *

 _AN: Did I mention that each chapter contains a "Sherlock" reference? Some of you are good at finding those (but keep it to yourselves not to spoil the fun for others)._

 _Anyway, tell me what you think of this chapter. Feedback is really important to me and makes me want to write more *wink*wink*_

 _If you liked it, check out my other stories or visit me on tumblr (perditaalottachocolate-blog). I tend to post sneak peeks of the stories I'm working on and share mostly miraculous content._


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